LawBreakers - 7 Things You Should Know Before Buying

Breakin' the law!

By
ravi sinha

Of the many big names releasing in August, one has had us intrigued ever since it was revealed – Boss Key Productions' LawBreakers, a multiplayer shooter that mixes arena combat with distinct hero classes. LawBreakers has already several beta tests and will be launching on August 8th for PS4 and PC. What should you know about the game before purchasing? Let's take a look at a few things.

Nine Classes, 18 Characters

In the world of LawBreakers, there are two factions – the Law aka police and the Breakers aka criminals. Though there is a story on why several pockets of Zero G have emerged through the world, it's inconsequential to the gameplay as a whole. All you need to know is that there are nine classes with two characters in each representing their respective faction, making for 18 total characters. These classes include the Assassin, a melee-focused character that's fast as lightning but somewhat squishy; the soldier-like Enforcer with grenades, an assault rifle and assault rifle; and the Vanguard, flying characters armed with Gatling guns and cluster grenades.

Directed by Cliff Bleszinski

LawBreakers is directed by Cliff Bleszinski who started a new studio called Boss Key Productions along with Arjan Brussee (who also co-founded Guerrilla Games, developer of Horizon: Zero Dawn). Bleszinski has worked on numerous franchises like Unreal and Unreal Tournament but is perhaps best known for being the lead designer for the first three Gears of War. LawBreakers will be Bleszinski's first game since leaving Epic and effectively retiring from game development.

Zero G Movement

Though LawBreakers is highly fast-paced and dependent on various forms of movement, it also highly emphasizes Zero G movement. Certain maps have sections where players can flit about freely in the air. Some characters have an easier time of this than others. Kitsune the Assassin is capable of grappling to different surfaces and opponents. Maverick the Vanguard has a jetpack with fuel (think along the lines of Pharah from Overwatch) to ascend and descend as necessary. These various kinds of movement, united by the central theme of Zero G, make for some crazy skirmishes in LawBreakers.

Eight Maps, Four Modes

When LawBreakers launches, it will have eight maps. These maps take place across a variety of locations from plazas to outposts high up in the mountains. The modes themselves are even more interesting – Turf War is your standard Hardpoint mode where you have to capture the most zones in a single match. Overcharge is about capturing a battery, bringing it to your base and then defending it as it charges. At full charge, it will score a point for your team. BlitzBall is your standard football knockoff (but with guns) while Uplink is centered on capturing an objective and downloading the data. Despite the furious combat, all modes in LawBreakers are objective-based. There's no free-for-all or team deathmatch mode (yet).

Priced At Rs. 2497 on PS4 and Rs 1,900 on PC

Since LawBreakers doesn't have a campaign at launch – and given comparisons to hero shooter Overwatch – the price point is designed to appeal to a wider range of consumers. Of course, when LawBreakers launches, it will be available for PS4 and PC. An Xbox One version is still up in the air though Bleszinski has expressed interest in the same.

Stash Boxes

Much like Overwatch though, LawBreakers will have a loot box system for its cosmetics. Referred to as Stash Boxes, Bleszinski has ensured that these microtransactions will only be used for cosmetic purposes and won't feature any pay to win mechanics. These boxes will net alternate skins for characters and weapons. Pricing on these Stash Boxes hasn't been discussed yet.

Free Post-Launch Content

Finally, LawBreakers will have post-launch content in the form of free updates. All future modes, maps and characters will be available for players free of charge. Again, this is fairly standard for hero shooters these days, especially with Overwatch and Paladins. Though Bleszinski hasn't announced what's currently in the pipeline, there is a push to bring as much content out as possible. So if you're a bit unsure about the current slate of content in LawBreakers, then you can always check back in a few months to see how much more has been added.